by Every year, Pennsylvania drivers submit thousands of personalized license plate applications hoping to stand out on the road. But not every idea makes the cut.
According to a recent report by City & State Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) turns down numerous vanity plate requests each day. Many are deemed inappropriate, offensive, or simply confusing.
To ensure plates are safe and suitable for public roads, PennDOT enforces strict guidelines. Plates cannot contain obscenities, slurs, misleading words, or phrases tied to drugs, violence, or crime.
Drivers can choose up to seven characters, using letters and numbers. But despite that freedom, not everything gets approved. A newly released “Do Not Issue” list shows just how wild — and sometimes vulgar — these rejected ideas can be.
Examples of denied plates include: EVILSOB, FLA5HME, DADDYAF, and ELOH55A (which spells “a-hole” backwards). Some rejections also involve slang or coded messages related to illegal behavior.
Last year alone, hundreds of thousands of submissions were denied for reasons ranging from profanity to being too similar to existing plates.
PennDOT’s screening process is all about keeping Pennsylvania’s roads respectful, safe, and free from offensive messaging.
To read more about rejected license plate applications, visit City & State Pennsylvania.
